"And Lucien?"
"At the moment there's a lot of fear and a lot of uncertainty. But below all of that, your love for him is so easy to see. You practically glow when you think or speak of him. When he walks into a room, the bond between the two of you is almost visible."
"Tell me something. What do you see when Lucien looks at Nikolas?" Logan suddenly looked uncomfortable. "Please, Logan."
"The jealousy is strong between the two of them, but the hatred I've always expected to see just isn't there. It's&unusual, really."
"Maybe there's hope for us yet."
"There is."
We fell into a comfortable silence. Every once in a while I'd sneak a glance up at Logan to admire his calm, friendly gaze. He was so different from just about everyone else in the coven. When he wasn't wearing Wranglers and cowboy boots, he wore tailored slacks and dress shirts. His blond hair was always short and perfectly trimmed. He looked like someone you could find in any fancy-assed office in the city, but he was just as down to earth as one could get.
I played with my tea more than anything. It soon grew cold, and I couldn't seem to force the cold liquid down. My stomach just couldn't handle it. There was a soft knock behind me and I turned to find Nikolas.
"You okay, princess?" He came up behind me and hugged me, his attention on Logan. "You been using your psycho skills again?"
"Be nice, Nikolas."
"We were just talking," Logan answered. He stood and took his cup and mine to the sink. "I think I'll leave you two alone. Peter? If you need me, I'm always here."
"Thanks, Logan."
"You didn't answer me," Nikolas said after Logan left the room. "Are you okay?"
"For now." I leaned back against Nikolas, feeling comforted by his presence. "What's up?"
"Well& I thought I'd see if you wanted to go hang out at the morgue and see who shows up for your Ricky friend. If we can catch whoever did this, I'd love to question them."
"There will be no need for that. It's been taken care of."
Nikolas and I both turned to find Silver in the doorway. The expression on his face was less than pleased and it immediately set me on edge. Silver was a good friend, but sometimes his position as head of security gave him a little more confidence in speaking his mind. I hated to be talked down to, and he'd been doing a lot of that lately.
"On whose authority?" I asked.
"Lucien's," he answered simply. "It wouldn't have been done otherwise."
His tone was sharp and his words just this side of accusing. "Oh, I'm sure you'd never take it upon yourself to take care of things without permission."
"What were his orders, exactly?" Nikolas asked.
"To find the rogue and execute him."
"You can't be serious!" I stood and turned to face Silver fully. "Why in hell would we want the guy dead before finding out why he targeted Ricky?"
"And why there was a werewolf involved," Nikolas added. "You had no right. This was pack business as well as coven business."
Silver shrugged. "Xander signed off on it."
"Of course he did." I was beyond pissed. "Because he was given a full rundown on the facts before he was asked for his okay?"
"I followed my orders as they were given to me."
I could feel my wolf just below the surface, pacing and pissed. He wanted nothing more than to take a hunk out of Silver's hide, just for the satisfaction of bleeding him. Nikolas' fingers threaded into my hair and he looked over at me, his expression concerned.
"He's not worth our time or energy."
"My wolf doesn't agree." I shook Nikolas' hand away and took it in mine. "For the record, Silver? I will remember this and every other time you have talked down to me. Do not think that I'm not keeping a tab or that I won't collect."
Nikolas and I left Silver standing in the kitchen. Once we were down the hall a little way, Nikolas laughed. "I thought you liked him."
"I do."
"Then why the posturing?"
"Because I hate being talked to like I'm a fucking child!" I let go of Nikolas' hand. "And he's had a fucking hard-on for getting me in trouble ever since I ditched my detail the first time."
"I hate to break the news to you," he whispered and leaned closer, "but you sound like a child."
I flipped him off and started to walk away.
"Oh, now, don't be like that, princess."
I kept walking, still flipping him off.
"Is that an offer?"